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The newspaper of record for Nanaimo and region since 1874 || Saturday. April 18, 2015
TINY HOMES Smaller houses provide means for bigger lives
Kiva Ganie, left, and Jacob Stevenson with the tiny home they are building in Nanoose. [AARON HINKS/DAILY NEWS]
Minimalism means more freedom JULIE CHADWICK DAILY NEWS
W
hen Aaron Emberson began construction on his tiny home in Nanoose Bay last year, he never realized it would provide the means for a much bigger life. Built on a flatbed trailer and measuring in at 99 square feet, Emberson’s abode is on the smaller end of what has become something of a movement in the desire for a smaller, cheaper, more simple life. Those building and living in tiny abodes — loosely defined as houses in the range of 500 square feet or less — say it also offers the freedom of home ownership without the ball and chain of a lifetime spent paying a hefty mortgage. “The option of me owning land was very slim, and also the fact that I didn’t know where I wanted to own land,” said Emberson. “Many people of a younger age nowadays, their life moves
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“We’d been renting for long enough that we were starting to question all the money that just felt like it was being thrown away into rent.” Jacob Stevenson, homeowner
around. They don’t just sit in one place, they want variety in life and it’s really hard in the systems that are set up nowadays to try to find a lifestyle you can invest in.” Emberson moved to the West Coast from Ontario two years ago, and began looking for people who were interested in renting land to him for the purpose of building. Emberson rents the current tree-fringed lot he has for $250 a month. Describing it as “an experiment in self-contained small impact
living,” Emberson’s tiny redroofed home is portable and off the grid. It has cost him about $9,000 to build so far. By the time solar panels are installed and the whole thing is finished he estimated total cost to be around $20,000. “My whole purpose was to lower my costs and be low-impact, and in turn it just happened that it ended up being a huge lifestyle change,” said Emberson. “It’s been the most fulfilled I’ve ever felt in my life, because I have this freedom, just from my mindset changing. My life isn’t at home. I don’t go somewhere and come back to my life, my life is out there. That just kind of clicked in my head and all of a sudden, the world was just amazing.” For Jake Stevenson and Kiva Ganie, who are in the midst of construction on their 200 squarefoot home, also in Nanoose, they estimate building costs will be about what they would have spent as a downpayment on their first house.
“We’d been renting for long enough that we were starting to question all the money that just felt like it was being thrown away into rent,” said Stevenson. “We had lived in Victoria for almost 10 years at that point and the housing market there is crazy expensive. It was just totally out of reach unless we’re both working full time, and we weren’t really stoked on putting in 20 years of crazy work just to afford an average house in Victoria.” As part of a school project, Ganie watched the 2012 documentary We The Tiny House People, which examines the lifestyles of those who search for self-sufficiency and minimalism in the form of making homes in small spaces — from caves to river boats and tool sheds. The couple discussed the film and decided they could be just as happy, or happier, in a smallerthan-average house. After purchasing a special tiny house trailer from Portland, Stevenson and Ganie set up shop at
Squamish cleans up after waterfront blaze
Adoption system in B.C. still needs work
The fire broke out early Thursday evening and although it had been contained by the next morning, a blaze below the dock continued to smoulder. » British Columbia, A8
Children and youth representative Mary Ellen Turpel Lafond says more needs to be done for First Nations children to be placed in First Nations homes. » Nanaimo Region, A3
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Editorials and letters ..... A4 Sports ................................... B1 Scoreboard ........................ B3
Classified ............................ B6 Obituaries ........................... B6 Comics ................................. B4
her parents’ property in Nanoose and began construction. Most tiny homes are typically completed for under $50,000. So far, Stevenson and Ganie have spent $21,000 and estimate they will move in by the summer. With a neat barn-red exterior, tempered glass windows, composting toilet, ultra-efficient LED lighting system and propane heat, their home leaves no detail to chance. Every space is maximized, from a toaster oven in the kitchen and a sit/stand office area, to a wall couch that doubles as a spare bed — but many comforts will be retained, for example, the loft features a king-sized sleeping area. Should they need room for an expanding family or to work on a hobby, Ganie and Stevenson feel they can easily accommodate changes by remaining flexible. “I’ve been downsizing a lot of my stuff, that’s been the main change so far,” said Ganie. See TINY, Page A5
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